Northern Ireland
The flag of Northern Ireland was designed in by Thomas Sadleir 1923 as the banner for the Royal Coat of Arms of Northern Ireland, and was first used by the Northern Irish government for the event of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953. When the Northern Irish government was prorogued and then replaced by direct rule from Westminster in 1973, usage by government organisations became naturally restricted to local councils, while unofficial usage continued as normal. Symbolism The flag is described, as the banner of the coat of Arms, thusly: Argent a cross gules, overall on a six pointed star of the field ensigned by an Imperial crown proper a dexter hand couped at the wrist of the second. The flag was based on the Ulster flag (top right), with the yellow field changed to a field of white in respect of the flag of St Patrick (bottom right). The crown was included on the flag to represent the British monarchy, a six-pointed star was included to represent each of the six counties in Northern Ireland, and an old symbol, the Red Hand of Ulster (traditionally a symbol of the O'Neill dynasty of Ulster) was included for historical reasons. The Red Hand is inside the star, and a crown sits atop the star. History The flag was a design created by Thomas Sadlier in 1923 for the banner of the Royal Coat of Arms, which were granted to Northern Ireland in 1924. Northern Ireland itself had only come into being in 1921, as a result of the Irish Free State seceding from the United Kingdom. As the Royal Warrant was granted to the Northern Irish government, the coat of arms for Northern Ireland stopped being used. The flag continues to be used by sports bodies and other organisations, as well as by a substantial number of Northern Ireland's citizens. The flag is also called the Ulster Banner, the Ulster Flag (erroneously - see below) or the Red Hand Flag. Controversy Northern Ireland as a state was not particularly accepted by some opponents of the Union, and so symbols representing the state were also rejected - including the flag of Northern Ireland. Opponents of the use of the flag suggest various reasons for its non-acceptance. These include the following: * Represents a political entity which is not supported or accepted (Irish Republicans and some nationalists) * Represents the British monarchy with the crown symbol above the Red Hand - objected to by republicans in the traditional sense of the word * Looks too much like the flag of England * Looks too much like the Ulster flag which might imply that Northern Ireland equates to Ulster or vice-versa There have also been suggestions that the six-pointed star which encloses the Red Hand is too much like the Star of David (as used in the flag of Israel). When civil strife (known as the Troubles) broke out at the end of the 1960s, the community became much more polarised on the issues of ethnic and ideological identities. Generally speaking, people brought up as Roman Catholic (particularly Irish Republicans) tended toward opposition of symbology for Northern Ireland, and favoured symbology from the Republic of Ireland. Those who were brought up as Protestant (particularly Ulster Loyalists) tended toward support of and usage of Northern Irish (and other British) symbols. Sometimes the usage of this flag, and other symbols by Loyalists, was over-the-top. Likewise, usage of symbols from the Republic of Ireland and symbols representing separation from the Union and the island of Ireland as a unified individual state became over-the-top and use of flags came to delineate political and religious territory in many parts of Northern Ireland. For this reason, the flag of Northern Ireland is rejected by a substantial minority of people who live there. However, the flag has not stopped being 'official'. The flag of Northern Ireland has always had the same 'official status' as the flag of England and (until the symbol was recently ratified in the Scottish parliament) the flag of Scotland and the Union Jack. Only the flag of Wales has had official legislation at the sovereign level which makes that flag 'official'. That being said, the flag of Northern Ireland is not used by the British government in official events: instead, the monarchy or the Westminster government will use the Union Jack. The Union Jack, however, is not the 'official flag of Northern Ireland'. The Union Jack represents the whole of the United Kingdom and does not represent Northern Ireland specifically, as an individual entity. To date, only the current flag of Northern Ireland represents Northern Ireland individually. Due to the rejection of the flag in some quarters, other organisations are cautious about using it, and there have been some advocates for the design of a new flag. Any new ideas will be rejected by hardline Republicans automatically because of the nature of their political beliefs. New flag designs may also be a hard sell to hardline Loyalists also, who are rigidly attached to the current flag. References See also *England *Ireland *Scotland *United Kingdom *Wales Category:United Kingdom Category:Ireland Category:Northern Ireland Category:White background Category:Red cross Category:Ulster Category:Articles needing proportions Category:Hands Category:Crowns Category:Six-pointed stars